Tunney turns 80

Posted: October 25, 2011

This weekend I had the privilege of attending the 80th
birthday party of my friend, mentor and hero, Tunney Lee. Tunney is not a traditional mentor—I
don’t actually recall any words of direct encouragement or praise that in my
head I associate with mentorship.
But the impact on my life has been profound. Tunney is simply the wisest and at the same time most
intrinsically optimistic person I have ever known. I have turned to him for advice and inspiration at all the
key transitions in my life and saved some of his special insights as wisdom
nuggets in a part of my brain as a sort of intellectual security blanket.

His oldest daughter, Thea, captured it when she said that
Tunney doesn’t ever direct people any place, but rather opens pathways for
people to move themselves.

Then Tunney spoke about how lucky he feels. He said we are all start with some DNA
and whatever culture we are born into.
Then who we become depends upon
who we encounter along the way—those human interactions are what shape those
primal forces. And he thanked
everyone for the relationships we have offered to him.

Typical of Tunney, he didn’t allow for speeches or
testimonials or even toasts—although my guess is that all 100+ people in
attendance would have jumped at the chance. He’s secure in the way we all feel about him and is too
humble to hear it declared aloud.

And to top it off, Tunney’s sister lives in one of JCHE’s
buildings! That’s a vote of
confidence I treasure.

Happy birthday, Tunney. The world is so much better a place
for your part in it.

JCHE provides people whose primary language is not English and as a result have limited English proficiency, the opportunity to request free language assistance in order to apply to or participate in its programs and activities.